Appointing City Clerk May Be Put to Vote

The city clerk position may become appointive rather than elective--but first residents have to vote on the issue.

City Council members said Tuesday that they will consider later this month whether to put the question on the November ballot.

City Clerk Audrey K. Culver was appointed to complete the term of Anne M. York, who retired in 1994. Culver has said she will run for the office in November, when the term expires.

If Culver were elected and, at the same time, voters approved the change in policy, she would serve four years and the council would appoint her successor in the year 2000.

City officials said they favor filling the clerk’s job by appointment because they would be able to screen applicants to choose the most highly qualified.

Culver, whose annual salary is $58,000, said the law now allows any registered voter to run for city clerk and does not impose any requirements on candidates.

“I think appointing a clerk is better for the city in the long run because it would ensure that there will be someone qualified in the office,” said Culver, a 30-year city employee. “As it is now, there’s nothing that says you need to know anything.”